


we keep this love in a photograph

by wafflesofdoom



Category: Emmerdale
Genre: Angst, Established Relationship, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Past Infidelity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-10
Updated: 2017-06-10
Packaged: 2018-11-12 13:30:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,545
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11162841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wafflesofdoom/pseuds/wafflesofdoom
Summary: robert took a lot of photos, and videos. he was a sentimental sort of person, at heart, and he liked having the memories. he'd take all sorts of videos, silly ones, videos of a nice view, videos of aaron  doing entirely mundane things.he had five favourites.





	we keep this love in a photograph

**Author's Note:**

> originally prompted on tumblr - _5 videos of aaron robert has on his phone that he probably sadly watched when he thought aaron was gonna leave him bc he wanted to hear his voice ___

Robert took a lot of photos, and videos. He was a sentimental sort of person, at heart, and he liked having the memories. He’d take all sorts of videos, silly ones, videos of a nice view, videos of Aaron doing _entirely_ mundane things.

He had five favourites.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**o n e. _wales_**

“Robert, what are you doing?” Aaron asked, hands on hips as he glared into the camera lens, Robert’s sunglasses perched on the bridge of his nose. He was standing at the small barbecue that had been sitting in the shed of the little cottage they’d rented in Wales, burgers charring on the too high heat.

Robert remembered the heat of the late afternoon well. They’d gotten lucky, with the weather, getting a whole week of close to constant sunshine, the summer well and truly kicking in as they enjoyed their beachside holiday.

They’d decided to have a barbecue, their last day, buying all sorts in Tesco, burgers and salad and a crate of beer, overly enthusiastic about the summery sun and their last evening as a trio.

“I’m capturing the moment,” Robert’s disembodied voice replied. _“_ For posterity.”

 _“For posterity?”_ Aaron responded, barely holding back a snort. “I’m cooking tea, Robert.”

“Yeah, cooking tea on our first holiday together,” Robert responded, the camera still focused on Aaron as he flipped the burgers, sunshine blurring the focus of the camera. “I’ll want to remember this, you know. The first time we had a proper holiday together,” he explained.

Aaron’s face softened, more close up now as Robert moved across the small garden of their rented cottage. “We’ll have more holidays,” he said, decisive.

“But this will always be the first.”

Aaron smiled, really, _genuinely_ smiled at the camera, tongs in hand. “You’re such a soft lad,” he teased, affection clear in his voice. “Now turn that off, and give us a hand. You’re supposed to be helping me, not arsing around on your phone.”

Robert had watched the video a hundred times, but the genuine love, and affection in Aaron’s voice, even back then, a mere few months after they’d decided to give their relationship a real go, astounded him.

It had been the beginning of something so good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**t w o. _the beach_**

“Robert, are you filming me again?” Aaron asked, exasperated. He was sitting on a low sea wall, ice-cream in hand. The weather wasn’t half as nice as it had been when they were in Wales, but they’d braved the chilly day to spend a few hours at the beach.

“I wanted to record the day you won me a keyring,” Robert had the camera in selfie mode, pointed at the two of them now. He held up a gaudy keyring, a horrifically bright yellow and blue snooker ball. “Aaron Dingle, reluctant romantic, won me a keyring.”

Aaron rolled his eyes, tongue darting out to lick away some of the melting ice-cream. “Its only because I didn’t like it,” he shrugged, hoodie tugged up around his ears. His hair was mostly gel free, the aftermath of the quick splash they’d taken in the freezing ocean.

Robert nudged his shoulder against Aaron’s, wrapped up in his leather jacket. His own hair was blowing wildly in the wind, half flat against his forehead, cheeks flush with the late summer chill. “Have you had a good day?”

“You need it on camera to prove I’m not lying or summat?”

“I need it on camera because I want to remember all the good times we’re having,” Robert said, resting his chin on Aaron’s shoulder. “For when we’re old and grey.”

“You afraid we’re not going to be happy when we’re old and grey?” Aaron inquired, his focus on Robert now, an intent expression on his face as he licked at his ice-cream.

“I know we will be,” Robert said, stealing a lick of Aaron’s ice-cream.

“Oi, this is mine!”

“Whats yours is mine,” Robert said cheekily, taking another lick of the ice-cream, Aaron yanking it out of his reach.

“We’re not married, mate, and even if we were, I wouldn’t let ya have any.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**t h r e e. _the washing machine_**

“Let it be noted that today, the first of October, Aaron Dingle, known hater of doing his own washing, is willing doing _our_ washing.”

Aaron was crouched on the floor in front of the washing machine, the cramped surroundings of the kitchen of the Woolpack familiar, heaps of washing in his hands. “Robert, don’t be a dick.”

“I’m not, I just wanted to capture this very rare moment on camera,” Robert sniggered from out of shot. “Aaron Dingle, _actually_ doing washing. Whats next, you’re going to start ironing your own clothes?”

“I’m going to fucking shrink all of yours if you don’t put the camera down and help me,” Aaron threatened, brandishing one of Robert’s floral shirts.

Robert laughed, setting his phone down on the counter, not bothering to end the video. The camera pointed at the ceiling, their laughter and soft voices could be heard in the background.

“Here - separate the darks and whites, and the colours, easiest way to stop destroying everything,” Robert said quietly, his voice distant. “So just put all your clothes in one pile, and mine in another, eh?”

“Go fuck yourself, Robert.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**f o u r. _put a ring on it_**

“Alright then, what are we celebrating today, Mr Dingle?” Robert asked, a smirk on his face as he laid down next to Aaron, his fiancé ( ** _fiancé_** ) looking at something on his phone, dark hair a stark contrast to their new grey pillowcases.

“Dunno,” Aaron responded with a cheeky grin, putting his phone aside. He looked _happy_ , a kind of happy you couldn’t fake, it practically oozing from every pore and line of his face.

Robert reached across, and pinched the skin of Aaron’s hip, out of view of the camera. “Cheeky,” he teased. “Come on, we have to document this!”

Aaron rolled his eyes good-naturedly, flashing his left hand at the camera. “He put a ring on it,” he joked, wiggling his finger, the brand new piece of metal that adorned his left ring finger glinting in the early morning light of their bedroom.

“I put a ring on it,” Robert confirmed, a bright grin on his face. “So, how does it feel to be marrying the sexiest man alive?”

“I’m not marrying meself, Robert,” Aaron responded cheekily, ducking away from Robert’s half-hearted slap. There was a moment of contented silence before he spoke again. “It feels good,” he said.

“Just, good?”

“Feels good,” Aaron confirmed, shifting so he could press a kiss to the underside of Robert’s jaw. “Are you going to put that away so we can celebrate properly now?”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**f i v e. _the wedding night_**

The video was blurry, mostly down to drunkness, a lot of it down to carelessness, Robert too drunk and in love to possibly care that he and Aaron were barely in shot, ties half undone and focus completely on each other.

“How does it feel to be a married man, Mr Sugden?” Robert asked, an oversized dove floating around in the background of the video.

Aaron paused, a pint held halfway to his lips. “Dunno just yet,” he replied, putting his pint down off camera.

Robert slung an arm around Aaron’s shoulders, pulling him in close. It was as though they couldn’t be close enough, like any inch of space between them was **_too much_**. “I love you,” he said, voice barely audible. “I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you.”

“I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you, soft lad,” Aaron replied, unashamedly in love as he leaned in, and kissed Robert, a sloppy, uncoordinated kiss that Robert remembered had set his heart racing.

The first day of their forever.

“I love you, Robert,” Aaron breathed, eyes closed and lips inches from Robert’s. “I love you so much.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Robert?”

Robert looked up from his phone with blurry eyes, tears threatening to roll down his cheeks. “Uh, just checking the news,” he fumbled, locking his phone.

Aaron was standing at the bottom of the stairs, arms folded across his chest. His hair was messy, curls falling across his forehead, eyes heavy with sleep. “Come to bed, Robert,” he said quietly.

Bed.

Like Robert deserved to share a bed with his husband, after what he had done.

Like Aaron should even want him there.

“Please, Robert,” Aaron said, holding out a shaking hand. “I need you to come to bed.”

Robert held onto his phone tightly, heart racing. “I don’t, I can’t-“

“Save the videos,” Aaron interrupted. “You’ve got me here, and now, Robert, and I’m not going anywhere.”

Robert let Aaron take him by the hand, the two of them ascending the stairs in a quiet, _almost_ comfortable silence.

“I still mean it, what I said,” Aaron murmured as they clambered underneath their duvet, the weight of Robert’s confession still hanging in their room, in their every breath and movement. “I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you. I just - I need time, to get through this. Can you give me that?”

Robert nodded furiously, tears welling in his eyes all over again. “Of course I can.”


End file.
